FIG. 16 indicates the conventional technique for processing data with a computer system.
In general, data is input and a processing result is output after executing some processings of such input data in the computer system.
In FIG. 16, the reference numeral 10 denotes memory; 11-1, 11-2, . . . , real data; 100, various processings or processes. The real data 11-1, . . . indicate real bodies of data depending, for example, character text data, or dot data for image display or vector data for line display, etc.
In the prior art, when various processings 100, such as retrieval, display, edition, transfer or data distribution, etc., is performed for these real data 11-1,11-2, . . . , access is made actually to a memory 10 storing such real data for each processing and thereby respective real data 11-1, 11-2, . . . are processed in direct.
Particularly, input/output data for various input/output devices have important significance from the point of view of utilizing a data processing system. However, the conventional data processing system has processed these data individually. Namely, any particular link is not provided for buffer, file or link for various definition.
For example, when it is necessary to overlappingly display images and character texts and simultaneously output voice data, the conventional system has been required to individually recognize data of different media with the processing programs and to process such data by making access to the related data.
For this reason, the conventional system has following disadvantages.
(1) It is impossible to provide a unified definition to respective real data having different properties and to complete respective real data as the parts by giving abstract meaning to these data.
(2) In case it is required to deal with data uniformly, data size must be constant field size and if only small amounts of data exist for each field , memory is used insufficiently.
(3) It is difficult to deal, from the one meaning, with various multi-media data such as code data, dot data, voice data and image data.
(4) Processing speed is lowered during the processing by for example transfer of unwanted real data.
(5) When decentralized data base is desired, management is complicated and communication cost increases.
By the way, a so-called objected oriented architecture is known for giving abstract meaning to real data. Namely, abstract data and a method for regulating behavior to such data are considered through the concept of an object and data processing is carried out through message communication among objects.
For example, when terminal units for processing various sensors such as thermometer, hygrometer, etc. as the objects are considered, if a number of sensors increase, a large expansion pressure is applied to memory resources. Therefore, a technique for eliminating pressure on the resources by saving quantity of resources to be used is required.
FIG. 17 indicates an example of a structure for the conventional objected-oriented processing.
In FIG. 17, reference numeral 10 denotes memory for storing real data; 110 a class object; 111A 111C subclass objects.
In an object-oriented system, data itself has an associated procedure (method) of operation and data of each object may be altered and data processing may be carried out by sending messages among objects. A representative of objects which have the same behavior is called a class. The more embodied lower classes for upper classes are called subclasses.
In the prior art, various sensors such as thermometer, water level meter and rain gage are considered as the objects of the same kind and when data output by such sensors are processed as received messages, the objects 111A, 111B, 111C of the subclasses are generated by copying, together with the data storing region of a memory 10 for each sensor, a class object 110 as shown in FIG. 17, and thereby each sensor is defined.
Therefore, when various sensors are defined using the conventional object orientation basis, a problem arises in that a required number of capsules are generated from the class object 110 as the sensors consisting of methods and real data and the same programs as many as the number of sensors that are generated and thereby a large memory is required.
Moreover, here lies a problem that since the subclasses have all the attributes of all sensors, processings are carried out inefficiently and processing speed is also lowered. Since definition of sensor is conducted in the programs, if a sensor is defined as a part, it is difficult to use a sensor unless contents of this program is sufficiently known.
In addition, the conventional object-oriented object combines a method and real data (instance) and uses them together. Accordingly, it has been impossible to apply the method prepared as a class to the instance having another abstract meaning. Therefore, the application range of the object method becomes narrow and it has also been difficult to generate the method with the conventional technique.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to solve such problems and to deal with different data and methods as the parts for structuring objects by giving abstract meaning to such data and methods.
Moreover, it is another object of the present invention to structure an efficient and flexible system by making it possible to process data and methods as parts with the commands consisting of short code information having respective meanings.
It is another object of the present invention to conduct ordinary processes, such as transfer and distribution of data, with short commands in place of processing indirectly the real data and provides outputs at a high speed by extracting real data from commands when it is finally required to output the real data to an external apparatus.
In addition, it is also an object of the present invention to provide a means for alleviating labor for program development by saving memory by suppressing the appearance of a large number of methods having similar contents for operating the real data and by widening application range of methods by realizing free combination of methods and instances.